Angel Stadium of Anaheim was set up with stadium Wi-Fi, just in time for fans of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim to have their spirits crushed by the Kansas City Royals.
A company called 5 Bars got the contract to set up connectivity for the stadium. The company deployed equipment from Ruckus.
The Ruckus Smart Wi-Fi network, owned and operated by 5 Bars, went live during last night’s Game 1 of the MLB American League Division Series (ALDS), which continues tonight at Angel Stadium.
The system provides free, Wi-Fi Internet access, including cellular offload.
Ruckus explained that stadium Wi-Fi is more difficult to pull off because of the concentration of users, who can quickly create contention problems for access points.
Ruckus explained its narrow beam and sectorized smart antennas in its Ruckus ZoneFlex APs are designed to focus RF energy into a specific area, which greatly reduces the opportunity for interference and increases network performance.
5 Bars deployed over 200 Ruckus ZoneFlex narrow beam (30 degrees) and ZoneFlex sectorized beam (120 degrees) outdoor access points aroundthe 45,000-seat stadium, as well as over 100 high-capacity, three-stream Ruckus ZoneFlex indoor access points, all centrally managed with the Ruckus SmartCell Gateway (SCG) 200, Ruckus reported.
The Ruckus-based network supports Hotspot 2.0 technology, which enables Wi-Fi connectivity that is as seamless as it is for 3G/4G LTE.
Angel Stadium staff is also using the new Wi-Fi network for their food concession operations. This includes approximately 150 wireless-enabled, movable cash registers and over two dozen handheld point-of-sale (POS) devices for facilitating in-seat food and beverage services to guests seated on the Club Level, and in the Diamond Club and Dugout Suites.
Angels Baseball administrative and operational staff is also using Ruckus Smart Wi-Fi in their business offices located inside the Stadium, the companies said.
Ultimately 5 Bars hopes to create a system that will give fans in the stands access to replays, live video, and access to the views from different cameras in use on the field.
Angel Stadium staff plan to utilize the Ruckus Smart Wi-Fi network for handheld ticket barcode scanners to process and validate tickets of incoming Angels fans and special event spectators at all of the Stadium gates.
“It also opens the door for more sophisticated neutral host services that supplement current distributed antenna systems that offer cellular access to fans,” said John Clarey, president and CEO of 5 Bars.
Photo Credit: AP
